Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1887-04-22
w c. r u
Tis9oiama is q Hted ande-,h he Direction
ofTho W. @. II, Bnion of 5terrstbsrg.1 |
An Open Letter to Thomas McDoagul,
OF CInclnNnil.

known minister of the Presbyterian church
in Northern Ohio, to eng ,ge in contro-
versy carried on Ivy yourself on one side
aud Neal Dow, DR.. Woldren and Dir, Leon
url on The other, were IL mot that have
received, with your compliments, a pam
phlet containing portions of this conlro-
versN and also aspcech made by yourself
before the Legislature against making any
changes in the Diw law,
AS ceased reading the Gasette when ii
fell under the control OF Murat lTalsleai,
the matter Of yonr pamphlet WAS measnr-
ably new, aud I read IL AL with n great
deal of interest aud so,ne little amazcmenl>
am Interested in the fact that law
yer makes distinction between submitA
ting to a decision of the Supreme Court
and 5elierin0 IN the decision, You say,
when asked, us il your opinion, as an at.
torney, that under the gallon clause of
the Dow Law, agencies can he established
by manufacturers, and these agents con.
tlnue to sell by the gallon and thus evade
the payment OF the tax or evade the oper-
alton of the local option where ii has been
adopted2" You say, at Ia my opinion
that they cannot, but like every other
LAWYER shall have to submit to the Su-
preme Court. 1t is my opinion that the
Pond Lnw was constitutional, It is my
opinion that the decisions that Destroyed
the Pond Law and the Scott Law will
never be followed by any court In this
country. although the judges who belonged
TO the Republican party helped TO destroy
the Pond Law BY deciding it unconstitu-
tionsl.' Page l0&
Now | claim the same privilege which
you claim for yourself. have an opinion
as TO the constitulonality of all three
of the laws named--Pond, Scott, Dow
which are all laws tor taxing the
liquor traffic. l had the opinion that the
Pond Law was unconstitutional that the
Scott Law fell in the same category, and
that the Dow Law is also unconstitutional,
That is my opinion. Il is not yours. But
| happen TO have Two decisions of the Sill
preme Court, bearing out mine and also
the opinions of two judges .on the bench
dissenting from the opinion OF the three
Republican judges, who held TO the con-
s,i,utionaliiy OF the Dow Law. So Mr.
McDougal my opinion seems TO have bet
ter legal backing than yours. am inter.
ested in these admissions of yours because
they seem TO allow Inc the privilge of dis
sentIng from men learned in the law with
out subiecting myself to the charge, so
freely made against some with whom you
Srgue OF being "uncharitnble, "spirltual-
ly proud" "self righteous in alliance with
the Democracy OF Ohio and the friends OF
free whisky ana beer" linen influenced by
zeal without knowledge and crazed with
impracicable sentiment"
shall then iearlessly follow your ex-
ample and say frankly that IN my opinion
the Pond Law, the Scott Law and the
Dow Law are all unconstitutional laws.
And may say further that in my opin.
ion they were contrived 10 defeat the will
OF the people ss expressed in the consti,u-
tion and IN the great vote in '83 for the
I'd amendment. may say further, that
in'my opinion, the people that same year
pronounced an emphatic opinion against
the whole Republican scheme OF Regula.
lion and Taxation, and in my opinion the
great effort of political managers since, has
been 10 defeat this expressed VIII OF the
people and lengthen the life of the saloon
and the distillery and brewery by an un-
constitutional system OF Taxation, the eff
feet OF which is that of License.
Do you want to know at what / am
amazed? Well sir, am amazed at your
logic. You attempt TO reason, but my
dear brother, your logic is in my opinion
very poor. Do you want an example +?
| Well, take the argument in favor of TAXA.
ton OF the liquor traffic. You compare It
to fine, page II. You say when you
| made the comparison DIR. L.. answered
the cases are not parallel" | presume
DIR. l.. has answered your attempt at argu.
ment, but / never saw il, and your argu-
ment coming first upon me, amazed me.
| Can it be that Il man who makes law
his profession does not discriminate be-
tween fine which is part Of the penalty
for wrong dong, and II tax which is paid
before hand and which carries privileges
with its payment
The Dow law lays tax upon the busi.
ness OF selling liquor. Can that business
be carried forward without the payment
OF the tax? You know it cannot. The
officers of the comfy are all ready aud
willing to collect the tax. Aud yet some
may refuse 10 pay. What then2 The
tax will he collected under distraint and \
penal fine Tor not having paid the Tax IN
due Time will he attached. In such
transaction you have both tax and fine
and one is distinct from the other.
The burglar whom you adducei in IL
luslration as mying his fine with the
stolen money wonld have been in exsc
parallel il he had paid into the court be-
fore hand the $500 as tax on his busi-
ness without the payment OF which II,
could not do business IA n burglar. lfyol
will stop and think little, yon will no
be surprised that am amazed AT this fa-
vorite piece of logic OF yours. And Will
this logic you propose 10 do away will
The uiterances OF yonr own church, which
in my opinion, are the enlbodyment of til,
Christian sentiment Of very large mum
ber of people outside of the Methods
church M well az within. You must hav,
seen the recent action of the city of Ncy
Orleans IN repudialng the course of III,
Mayor IN levying IA tax upon the gambling
houses OF the city. The city did not wan
its charities supported by this tax on vice
tax (which provided for It's continu.
ance" from month to month. 1t is no
the tax which destroys the gambling
Neither does 1t destroy liquor selling
though ii may destroy n few salouns. III
decision of your conference in my opin
ion is wiser and nearer the fact lhal
Thomas McDougal's opinion to the con
trary, and you know, my brother, iha
even in points OF constitutional law all I'll,
c judges do not agree with Thomas Nc
I Dougal, even when they belong to Thoma
McDougals party.
Another thing at which am amazed !
| Mon a A,